Extensive experience proving fruitful for city

With two major redevelopment projects underway, Richmond Heights Economic and Community Development Director Brian Gleisser is enjoying the emerging vision he and the city have collaborated on with the firm DealPoint Merrill, based in Los Angeles.

With the self-storage facility CubeSmart now open at Richmond Town Square Mall, Gleisser and the city are anticipating the groundbreaking of an approved mixed-use beautification project on the mall property in the coming months, which will include a hotel, apartment complex and ground-level retail space.

In addition, the city has also recently opened a 7,500-square-foot Dollar General store at 26180 Chardon Road.

Major improvements are also being made to the Kiwanis Lodge at the city's Community Park. Gleisser said a kitchenette and two restrooms are being added to the lodge’s lower level. Federal block grant money was recently awarded for the undertaking in the amount of $150,000 by Cuyahoga County.

Gleisser brings 30 years of experience in economic and community development in Northeast Ohio. ANd, calling the existing projects “exciting,” he has been busy in his short tenure, only joining Richmond Heights six months ago.

“We want Richmond Heights to be a destination for families and believe these plans of redevelopment will help ensure that,” he said.

He has worked as a city planner for the Cleveland City Planning Commission, as community development senior vice president for University Circle, Inc. and as executive director of a local development corporation in Cleveland’s Lee Harvard neighborhood.

While at UCI, Gleisser oversaw the development of a $24 million mixed-use project and a $3.5 million boutique hotel.

He was also a member of the senior management team at the Council for Economic Opportunities in Greater Cleveland, a community action agency providing services throughout Cuyahoga County.

Gleisser’s civic involvement has included an appointment to the Shaker Heights Planning Commission and election to Shaker Heights City Council, where he chaired the Neighborhood Revitalization Committee and Landmarks Commission.